First a golf course, now schools. How NSW is reclaiming green space for apartment living

The NSW Labor government’s crusade to free up more green space as Sydney grapples with a shift to higher density living will open school ovals to the public after hours and on weekends.

In an expansion of a program which already allows hundreds of schools to open up playing fields during the holidays, the Minns government will trial public schools also making their ovals available during term time.

Premier Chris Minns said there was “a significant amount of green space that the public have been locked out of for many years”, including the state’s public schools.

Manly West Public School will allow its oval to be used by the community after hours. Credit: Edwina Pickles

Schools that will be in the first phase of the after-hours trial include Kogarah High, Bardwell Park Infants School, Manly West, Roseville and Seaforth primary schools and Strathfield Girls High.

The government is determined to find more green space for the city, which has locked Minns in a turf war with golfers over his plans to halve Moore Park’s 18-hole golf course to create a 20-hectare park.

Minns last year vowed to slash nine holes from Moore Park, the closest golf course to Sydney’s CBD, and convert nearly half the 45-hectare site into a park for residents of the nearby fast-growing suburbs of Green Square, Redfern, Zetland and Waterloo, citing the need to balance density with green space.

Golfers, local councillors and even US actor Mark Wahlberg, an avid golfer, are against the plans.

The next target in Minns’ greens space push will be schools. Under the government’s popular shared spaces program, almost 200 school ovals are available during the holidays for public use, but they cannot be used outside the term break.

Minns said unlocking extra green space outside of school hours was “especially important” as the government urges young people to get off devices and be active following the introduction of mobile phone bans in schools, as well as social media restrictions.

The premier said the shared spaces trial would also provide more critical green space and outdoor recreation as “we continue to build much-needed new homes and apartments for young people and families across the state”.

Kogarah High School is one of the first schools opening for community access following upgrades to its oval.

The oval had been shared between the school and the public outside school hours for decades until the policy was shelved under the former government.

Fencing has been replaced on several sides of the field to improve safety and access for residents, and two new stair entrances and a ramp and gate have been installed to improve accessibility.

The oval will be open to the public from 4pm to 8pm Monday to Friday, and 8am to 8pm on weekends. During school holidays, it will be open to the public from 8am-8pm every day.

Minns said he had “never been a fan of locking up school grounds to the public”.

“It seems like a waste to keep hundreds of school ovals locked up,” he said.

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